Has anyone been "Referred To MEB for Migraines"...

i claimed migraines as one of my conditions, make sure you have the documentation to prove the intensity and duration. i had multiple er visits, was prescribed triptans, and had to go home early many times. all in my med records and ended up with 30% va rating for them.
 
How do I explain to my supervisor that this truly effects my job performance. I have a habit of trying to work through my migraines and I'm kind of low in rank. How do I say to my supervisor when I get one of these migraines. I get them about 4 times a week.
 
I was found unfit for Migraines and given a rating from the PEB.

My last appointment the Doctor politely asked me to pick (3) conditions I felt impacted my duty position. He told me I could put all of them but most likely in his opinion this appears as if I was complaining about everything and creditability is sometimes is in question.

Again, just what happened to me (wrong) or (right); I concurred and was found unfit for three conditions and given a very fair rating.

I do know their are others that disagree with this but I am just stating from my own experience.

I am glad you are pleased with your outcome. But, this doctor was wrong in my opinion. Not his job to provide legal advice or to counsel you on this... If he wanted to be a lawyer, he should have picked that career.
 
MattF1212,

I am being medically retired next month from the Navy cause of my Crohns. I had over 20 conditions for the VA and I am 100% now. One of my conditions was Headaches and they awarded me 30% which is typically the most you will see people get. So hope for the best, and just be patient, the process took me almost a year. God Bless!!

Thanks. I'm practicing being patient. I don't have 20 (thankfully) but i do hope that what I have is enough. and i don't need 100% etc. just looking for unfit and a fair rating...be with family lower the stress level i hope etc.

thanks for the input. i appreciate you taking the time.
 
How do I explain to my supervisor that this truly effects my job performance. I have a habit of trying to work through my migraines and I'm kind of low in rank. How do I say to my supervisor when I get one of these migraines. I get them about 4 times a week.

First i would sit down with them and let them know about the MEB. tell them you are in it if they don't know they need to be involved and supportive. when you are too sick to work you need to go to the ER. when you have appointments for MEB or for medical care you need to be able to make the appointments. part of their job is care for the service member and they should understand that. Make sure they understand that it is not that you "just don't feel well" it is a safety issue when vision and response times are effected.
 
First i would sit down with them and let them know about the MEB. tell them you are in it if they don't know they need to be involved and supportive. when you are too sick to work you need to go to the ER. when you have appointments for MEB or for medical care you need to be able to make the appointments. part of their job is care for the service member and they should understand that. Make sure they understand that it is not that you "just don't feel well" it is a safety issue when vision and response times are effected.
Thank you Matt. I will address this to my supervisor. I let them know right away of the MEB but I am definitely going to push for them to understand the appointments and the vision and safety issues. I think right now they are just very unaware of how the MEB works. When I told my supervisor even about the MEB, he wanted to go to my next neurologist appointment with me and somehow either stop the process/retract the MEB from happening and sit in on my entire appointment with me. For me, I really don't want him there with me when I'm with the neurologist because I don't see the point of it and I think it would just make the doc mad. Any advice?
 
He has no right to be in there when you are with the neurlogist. I am dealing with a similar problem. They don't want to be there but they are asking for details on my appt that are between me and my PCM. its a privacy issue and covered by hippa. your commander can request info from the hospitol and they will give him what is legal for him to have.
 
Thank you Matt. I will address this to my supervisor. I let them know right away of the MEB but I am definitely going to push for them to understand the appointments and the vision and safety issues. I think right now they are just very unaware of how the MEB works. When I told my supervisor even about the MEB, he wanted to go to my next neurologist appointment with me and somehow either stop the process/retract the MEB from happening and sit in on my entire appointment with me. For me, I really don't want him there with me when I'm with the neurologist because I don't see the point of it and I think it would just make the doc mad. Any advice?

That is illegal and I'm guessing you supervisor is enlisted and even if it were an officer it makes no difference. only person that can be present would be your spouse if you choose.

Mine have stopped asking me any details. as yours should. there questions should be are you ok? how can we help? what do you need from us? and if they contact your doctors it should be to ask how they can assist in a. youe well being b. the process.

if they want info it can come in the form of a Permanent Profile which you should recieve from MEB or better yet Neurologist when he referes you for an MEB stating what you can and can't do including your actions upon migraine onset. no one can tell you when you have a migraine and neurologist can lay out a plan of what you do immediately upon start of headache until it has subsided.
 
That is illegal and I'm guessing you supervisor is enlisted and even if it were an officer it makes no difference. only person that can be present would be your spouse if you choose.

Mine have stopped asking me any details. as yours should. there questions should be are you ok? how can we help? what do you need from us? and if they contact your doctors it should be to ask how they can assist in a. youe well being b. the process.

if they want info it can come in the form of a Permanent Profile which you should recieve from MEB or better yet Neurologist when he referes you for an MEB stating what you can and can't do including your actions upon migraine onset. no one can tell you when you have a migraine and neurologist can lay out a plan of what you do immediately upon start of headache until it has subsided.
Thank you Matt. I was thinking that it was weird for him to even want to go to my appointments. He is enlisted and I believe he did this to one of my coworkers and now she is having the same problems I have at work. How long though did it take for them to get you a profile?
 
AF may work different than Army but the actual referral to an MEB means a Permanent Profile has to be filled out. So if it has not been then look at the document they used to refer you...is there any info on it? if not call your neurologist and leave a msg or make an appt. and go in and tell him you need limitations or your supervisors will not adjust your work and there is a safety issue and lives of other airman are at risk.

is your neuroologist the one who referred you yo MEB? is he civilian or an AF officer?
 
AF may work different than Army but the actual referral to an MEB means a Permanent Profile has to be filled out. So if it has not been then look at the document they used to refer you...is there any info on it? if not call your neurologist and leave a msg or make an appt. and go in and tell him you need limitations or your supervisors will not adjust your work and there is a safety issue and lives of other airman are at risk.

is your neuroologist the one who referred you yo MEB? is he civilian or an AF officer?
It should be the same as the Army's. I thought the same thing too. Usually if someone is on a profile in the AF for over about 6 months or so then you are initiated into the MEB process. But in my case my neurologist didn't do that. I am seeing a base neurologist and he is an AF officer. He a Lt. Col in the AF and I assumed that he knew what he is doing with the MEB process, but when I left after my visit last week he told me all he was going to do is fill out some report, start the MEB process, and send it to the MEB people. On the base, there is an office of some sort in the hospital that I saw that said "MEB" so I'm assuming he sent it to them. The neurologist made it sound like that from here on out they were going to somehow take over the process. I'm going to see the neurologist possibly this month but it was just going to see my cat scan results. That's why I think this probably isn't usually how someone is Medically boarded.
 
It should be the same as the Army's. I thought the same thing too. Usually if someone is on a profile in the AF for over about 6 months or so then you are initiated into the MEB process. But in my case my neurologist didn't do that. I am seeing a base neurologist and he is an AF officer. He a Lt. Col in the AF and I assumed that he knew what he is doing with the MEB process, but when I left after my visit last week he told me all he was going to do is fill out some report, start the MEB process, and send it to the MEB people. On the base, there is an office of some sort in the hospital that I saw that said "MEB" so I'm assuming he sent it to them. The neurologist made it sound like that from here on out they were going to somehow take over the process. I'm going to see the neurologist possibly this month but it was just going to see my cat scan results. That's why I think this probably isn't usually how someone is Medically boarded.

no you are still under medical care of the neurologist until you are out of AF or moved to another post. he still has the job of caring for you medically.

you can say when you see him that you need a profile to work with your supervisors. you need to know what you can and can not do and what you should do when migraine starts. if he has started meb he should have no problem with this.

no he may have just done paperwork to start you in process...but you should get copies of that. save a copy of everything from this day on.
 
no you are still under medical care of the neurologist until you are out of AF or moved to another post. he still has the job of caring for you medically.

you can say when you see him that you need a profile to work with your supervisors. you need to know what you can and can not do and what you should do when migraine starts. if he has started meb he should have no problem with this.

no he may have just done paperwork to start you in process...but you should get copies of that. save a copy of everything from this day on.
Thank you so much for the help. I'm definitely going to be taking a lot of this up with my neurologist. I'm going to make an appointment asap on tuesday and hopefully he tells me the status of my other paperwork.
 
i claimed migraines as one of my conditions, make sure you have the documentation to prove the intensity and duration. i had multiple er visits, was prescribed triptans, and had to go home early many times. all in my med records and ended up with 30% va rating for them.

Diablos

The Va stated in my c&p exam how often migraines occur, intensity and duration of headaches. then at the end in the little summary portion she didn't fill out the part that asks if it effects his daily occupation.

My neurologist (DOD) has in my record how ofeten I get headaches and how bad they are.

I have a memo from my commander that I do not drive when it is dark and do not report to work before 0900 (missing morning pt and formation) due to fear of headache or worse possible seizure occurance and safety issues.

I have left work, but don't go to the er because i have oxygen and meds at home.

Should I get a memo from my unit saying i have missed work x number of times in the last 12 months due to migraine headaches? and put that with my PEBLO packet this week before they get my NARSUM ready?
 
The conditions failing to meet retention standards will be listed on the DA 3947 and in the NARSUM.

You don't have a "say," strictly speaking- it is the determination of the MEB that matters. However, if they fail to properly evaluate your case, you should ask for an impartial independent review of the case. This will trigger a review by a provider not on the MEB (often, your PCM), who will either concur with the MEB or disagree. It is pretty rare to get a disagreement, but the important thing is that by requesting the review, it triggers an obligation for the MEB approving authority to respond in writing to your written submissions. This also rarely results in changes- if it does, then great, you have won that "battle"- but it does two important things. 1) It gets your views, which otherwise would not be available, before the IPEB. This will increase your chances of a good early outcome from the IPEB. 2) It makes clear that you disagreed, which in some cases is an important issue in later appeals.

Jason

Thanks for your help.

I had a pretty good MEB Physician. and he did list all 3 conditions as Not meeting retention standards.

Cluster / Horton's Migraine Syndrome (referred) iaw AR 40-501 3-30 g
Malignant Melanoma Cancer iaw AR 40-501 3-42 a
Trigamenial Neuralgia 5th Cranial / Horner's Syndrome iaw AR 40-501 3-30 j

P2 Sleep Apnea meets retention standards

L2 Right Knee Meniscus Tear meet retention standards

I thought it was imprtant to get those 3 listed rather than just general Migraine. He was going to go with section 3-41 Misc. and I had the paragraphs and sections already picked out and was able to show him and he agreed getting them into catagories is better then just calling them misc conditions etc. So all in all it was a good meeting/appointment.
 
Definitely, if you want to maximize chances it will be found unfit. Again, I would look to AR 40-501 for conditions that fail retention standards and require an MEB. With its recency, seems to me that it is clearly a condition that fails retention standards.

Jason

thanks for your guidance. My NARSUM and 3947 ended up having 3 conditions not meeting retention standards.

I got my Unfit Memo today and was found unfit for all 3 conditions. Packet sent to VA for rating 13 Feb 2013.

To my understanding the MEB finds conditions that don't meet retention then makes recommendations...

then PEB determines fit or unfit and if it is unfit then you are actually stoping military service for medical reasons. there isn't anouther step after that to determine if you stay in or not. after unfit it is now all about ratings and detemination of severence, TDRL, PDRL correct?
 
MattF1212 my husband just received his ratings. He was MEB'd for migraines and they deemed him unfit due to them. He also claimed other things, but this was the determining factor. His rating is 50% on the TDRL list so it could always be reduced. He gets them anywhere from 1 week to 3 weeks out of the month and is down flat when he has them. If you have questions about his situation let me know. Hope yours turns out the way you want. Sorry to hear you suffer from them.
 
MattF1212 my husband just received his ratings. He was MEB'd for migraines and they deemed him unfit due to them. He also claimed other things, but this was the determining factor. His rating is 50% on the TDRL list so it could always be reduced. He gets them anywhere from 1 week to 3 weeks out of the month and is down flat when he has them. If you have questions about his situation let me know. Hope yours turns out the way you want. Sorry to hear you suffer from them.

I'm really interested to know a breakdown of his ratings...

his DoD was 50 what was his VA

I have Migraine as Unfitting condition along with 2 others and another 10 conditions to be rated by VA
 
MattF1212 my husband just received his ratings. He was MEB'd for migraines and they deemed him unfit due to them. He also claimed other things, but this was the determining factor. His rating is 50% on the TDRL list so it could always be reduced. He gets them anywhere from 1 week to 3 weeks out of the month and is down flat when he has them. If you have questions about his situation let me know. Hope yours turns out the way you want. Sorry to hear you suffer from them.

They have me listed as 4 to 8 headaches a month requiring Oxygen Tank, medications and quiet seated or laying position in dim lit room.
 
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